Five years ago, the very thought of using a touchscreen device without a stylus was considered ridiculous. Almost all touchscreen phones – be it Windows Mobile, Symbian or Palm – came with a stylus that helped consumers use the interface in a more effective manner. However, the arrival of the iPhone in 2007 changed all that. The capacitive touchscreen and interface was designed to respond to fingers rather than a stylus. Although Nokia and Microsoft kept their touchscreen operating systems stylus-friendly for some time, even they moved to capacitive screens with Symbian ^3 and Windows Phone. But the stylus still refuses to fade away and remains the instrument of choice for those who prefer writing by hand. Writing remains easiest with a stylus, unless you are really addicted to onscreen keyboards.
APPS TO USE WITH STYLUS
GRAFFITI
No Longer Palm Territory
GRAFFITI WAS the best option for anyone wanting to write using a stylus before the iPhone. It involved getting used to a set of symbols to represent the alphabet, generally written without lifting the stylus. The same handwriting recognition is now available for Android devices for free (with ads, a paid version is $2.99). It can step in for your keyboard and works well with all apps that use a keyboard. Only issue is that it performs more sluggishly on Android and than it did on Palm OS devices.
GET IT FROM: Android Market
WRITEPAD
Handwriting on the Tab
ALTHOUGH WRITEPAD comes for a stiff price ($9.99), it claims to have 'state-of-the-art' handwriting recognition which learns your writing style. While it was not always 100% accurate, it did a decent job. The application gives you the option of either writing anywhere on the display or within a section. You can also save your work as a PDF, share it on Twitter an Facebook, or send it to Google Docs. We loved the fact that the app (at times) even corrected our spelling mistakes and that it had support for cutting, copying and pasting text as well choosing different fonts.
GET IT FROM: iTunes App Store, Android Market
7 NOTES
Note-taking at its Best
IF YOU prefer using your own handwriting to take notes, 7Notes is the app for you. It comes in free and Premium versions ($8.99) and we recommend the latter if you take copious notes. You can write notes, convert them into text later (very cool), and even add Web pages and images. You can also save your notes at Evernote (how appropriate), Dropbox and share them on Twitter and Facebook. And it is available on both Android and iOS. The recognition levels were not as good as on WritePad, but the app is still very usable.
GET IT FROM: iTunes App Store and Android Market
PHATPAD
Handwriting, Text, Everything
PHATPAD COMES from the makers of WritePad but is more versatile. You can make notes in your handwriting, draw, insert pictures, scribble and even add audio clips. If you want to add typed text, the handwriting recognition feature opens an input area — you write normally and the apps translates it into text. You can export results as PDF, upload them to Google Docs, and send them to Evernote — no social networking sharing options here. Not a bad deal for $4.99 actually (A beta version is available for Android tablets).
GET IT FROM: iTunes App Store MYSCRIPT MEMO
Writing for Free
HANDWRITING RECOGNITION is one of the biggest necessities for a decent application, but this often comes with a price tag. Which is why we love the free MyScript Memo. It gives you the option to either preserve your work the way it is, convert to an image or text. It can't give WritePad and 7Notes sleepless nights but it works. You can also add effects, insert images and place your final work in Evernote, Twitter or Facebook. If it is simply handwriting you want on your iPad, with no cash changing hands, you can't do better than this.
GET IT FROM: iTunes App Store
THE STYLUS MAKES A COMEBACK WITH SAMSUNG'S GALAXY NOTE
NO SINGLE device has done as much to revive public interest in the stylus as Samsung's hybrid, the Galaxy Note. While the 5.3 inch Super AMOLED display is its most arresting feature, it also packs in the S Pen. Unlike the routine stylus whose main job is to simply act as a substitute for your finger, this one actually comes with its own button that lets you take a screenshot and edit it. There are other writing and sketching-related apps being developed for the S Pen. But the real killer feature of the S Pen is that it has a sharp tip, unlike the snub-nosed stylus you see for most capacitive screen devices. This makes it perfect for writing. The fact that the Note comes with handwriting recognition, letting you actually write with the stylus in any application which uses the keyboard for input. This means that you can use the stylus to do just about everything that you can with your finger. All of this makes the Galaxy Note perhaps the best option for those who love writing by hand. And things can only get better as more custom apps flow in for the S Pen.
Stylus Tips
WHILE WRITING, it's best to go for simple, clear letters — avoid cursive writing
REMEMBER TO be patient — most apps do take a bit of time to recognise what you are writing. The faster you write, the greater the chance of errors creeping in
REMEMBER TO keep the tip of your stylus and the touchscreen surface clean – scratches and dust can cause errors
DO NOT press down hard while writing with a stylus – a gentle touch is generally all that is needed
IF YOU HAVE to choose between a heavy stylus or a light one, go with the former. It makes writing a whole lot easier, believe us
SIZE DOES matter — the longer the stylus, the closer it will be to a pen or pencil, making it easier to use
A Stylus for Other Devices
IF YOUR device (phone/ tablet) does not come with a stylus, you can buy one seperately. Capacitive touchscreens will not work with a regular plastic stylus — you will need a capacitive screen stylus which has a special foam tip. There are various options available from brands like Griffin, Capdase and Wacom from as low as 999. This kind of stylus has a fatter tip and will not be very good for handwriting or notes, but you can use it for drawing/sketching and general navigation.
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